167 million people owing their lives to assisted reproductive technologies will have been born by 2100

ivff populationAccording to present trends, fertility services will continue to grow robustly and the number of births is likely to be much higher than 167 million people.

If the average annual increase is 10,000 or 20,000 births the numbers of people alive that year will rise to 236 or 315 million, respectively by 2100.

At 30,000 more births per year, 394 million people will be alive and represent over 3% of humanity.

Scientists discovered a new critical process for healthy embryo development

Sembryos ringcientists have discovered a process during mammalian embryonic development that is critical for early embryos to develop into healthy blastocysts.

Transformation from morula to blastocyst is a defining event of preimplantation embryo development. During this transition, the embryo must establish a paracellular permeability barrier to enable expansion of the blastocyst cavity.

Using advanced microscopy techniques and live mouse embryos, the researchers observed rings of actin – a main component of a cell’s cytoskeleton – forming on the surface of the embryo.

The study, jointly led by Dr Maté Biro of UNSW Medicine and Dr Nicolas Plachta of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) in Singapore, is published in the journal Cell.

Frozen embryo transfer could be better than the fresh one

frozen embryoA new study carried out by a research team at The University of Western Australia and Fertility Specialists of Western Australia has found that women undergoing IVF who have had embryos fail to implant have more success using frozen ones than fresh ones.

“The study results demonstrate that a frozen embryo implantation is more successful than transferring the embryo straight after the biopsy in a fresh IVF cycle, as the environment within the uterus is more ‘normal’ in a subsequent natural cycle, than during an IVF cycle where the hormone levels are often very high.”

The research was published today in Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol.

Men with low sperm counts are likely to have important co-existing health problems

infertile men

Men with low sperm counts are more likely to have a number of health issues that put them at increased risk of illness, new research suggests.

A study of 5,177 men found those with low sperm counts were 20% more likely to have more body fat, higher blood pressure and more “bad” cholesterol.

They were also much more likely to have low testosterone levels.

The study’s authors said it showed that men with low sperm counts should also be tested for other health problems.

Dr Alberto Ferlin, who led the study, said: “Infertile men are likely to have important co-existing health problems or risk factors that can impair quality of life and shorten their lives.

The study will be presented at ENDO 2018, the Endocrine Society’s 100th annual meeting in Chicago.

Pioneering treatment with stem cells therapy reverses the symptoms of menopause.

stem cells menopauseBreakthrough raises the prospect of women having babies in their 50s with stem cells therapy.

Pioneering treatment that reverses the symptoms of early menopause has raised hopes that women affected could go on to have children naturally.

Stem cells from bone marrow were injected into the ovaries of 33 women suffering premature ovarian failure (POF) who began to have periods again after six months.

As well as treating early menopause, which can lead to women becoming infertile in their forties or earlier, it could also offer an alternative to hormone replacement therapy.

Complex structure at the tip of the sperm tail

New studysperm tail led to the discovery of a novel, complex structure at the tip of the sperm tail that has never been seen before.

Since sperm motility and morphology are determinants of male fertility, understanding the functional role of the TAILS complex may have clinical implications relating to male infertility and contraception.

Why choose IVF? 10 + 1 reasons

Why choose IVF? 10 + 1 reasons

IVF is likely to be recommended for the following fertility problems:

Why choose IVF1. Damaged or blocked fallopian tubes, which stop the sperm from reaching the egg.
2. Ovulation disorders, which result in fewer eggs available for fertilization.
3. Premature ovarian failure (loss of normal ovarian function before the age of 40).
4. Endometriosis, which affects the function of the ovaries, uterus and fallopian tubes.
5. Fibroids (benign tumors which grow beneath the outer layer of the uterus (subserosal), inside the muscular wall of the uterus (intramural), or inside the uterine cavity (submucus) and can cause infertility.
6. Previous tubal sterilization or removal.
7. Male infertility, including poor sperm quantity, poor sperm mobility, or poor sperm quality (increased percentage of abnormalities in sperm size and shape), which reduce the chance of fertilization.
8. Advanced reproductive age.
9. Unexplained infertility, where, in spite of the complete evaluation for common causes, the cause of infertility has not been found.
10. A genetic disorder. If you or your partner is at risk of passing on a genetic disorder to your child, then a procedure that involves IVF called Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) can be performed in the Mediterranean Fertility Institute.
11. Fertility preservation for cancer or other health conditions. Women can freeze (cryopreserve) her eggs in an unfertilized state for later use or her eggs can be fertilized and frozen as embryos for future use.